Today, Bank of America has been ordered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to pay over $150 million for dubious practices such as multiple charging of insufficient fund fees, denying promised credit card bonuses, and unauthorized use of personal information to open accounts. They have been ordered to pay $90 million in penalties to the CFPB and $60 million in penalties to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).
“Bank of America wrongfully withheld credit card rewards, double-dipped on fees, and opened accounts without consent,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra in a press release. “These practices are illegal and undermine customer trust. The CFPB will be putting an end to these practices across the banking system.”
The bank reportedly:
- Charged clients multiple times for the same insufficient funds transaction.
- Withheld promised rewards to credit card customers, particularly those who applied in-person or over-the-phone.
- Misused personal data to open unauthorized accounts, damaging customers’ credit profiles and imposing unjustified fees.
This isn’t the first time Bank of America has been reprimanded; previous infringements include illegal credit card practices and mismanagement of unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The CFPB’s orders require Bank of America to halt these malpractices, compensate consumers affected by the unlawful fees, pay $90 million in penalties to the CFPB, and $60 million to the OCC. The penalties will be added to the CFPB’s victims relief fund.
Bank of America currently serves 68 million clients and small businesses around the world, and as of March 2023, had $2.4 trillion in consolidated assets and $1.9 trillion in domestic deposits.
If you have any specific complaint about BofA or any other bank, you can submit them on the CFPB’s website here or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).
